Michele Gay apologizes for the unfinished look of the house, but her family only moved in three weeks earlier. And even after the boxes are unpacked, the books put away, and the curtains hung, the house, in a quiet suburb west of Boston, will have an empty feel.
Missing is the little girl who loved peanut butter by the spoonful, the color purple, and the two older sisters and parents who doted on her. Michele and Bob Gay’s youngest child was among the 20 first-graders massacred in December at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Bob Gay had already started a new job in the Boston area, and the family was just weeks away from relocating when the shootings took place.
Comments
My heart aches reading this story. Joey and her friends had their pool party in heaven. The killer burns in hell.
Ms English, thanks you for such a beautifully written article. My thoughts and prayers are with the Gay family, and once I stopped sobbing, I contributed to the Joey Fund.
What a remarkable child of God. What a wonderful family.
horrible and beautiful at the same time. i'll hug my first grader a little tighter today. sigh....
Bella, very nice job. The strength of the family and the individual strength of Michelle ad Bob stuns me. God Bless these people. I bet every day allows them to serve others while they heal themselves, and they do with a strength we all should admire with our relatively little problems and issues.
In the wake of such an awful, violent event that took their daughter's life,
the strength shown by this couple and family is awe inspiring. Their precious
Joey was with them for such a short time yet what a wonderful combination
of family and child. With their loving memories, faith, and devotion to their
children, they are teaching us all. Both Newtowne and their new community
will continue to embrace and protect them and all the families who experienced
such profound loss and grief. God bless you Michelle and Bob.
Beautifully done. The grace and composure of this family is inspiring and heart-wrenching at the same time. The work they are doing for others is such a fitting legacy for their daughter.
After reading this story, I don't feel as bad about the Ravens; if a little girl can bring out the best in a bunch of football players, then she indeed, did some inspiring work on this earth. Her journey was brief, her spirit eternal. Thank you to the Gay family for having the generosityand courage to share their story of Joey with us; wishing you many blessings.
A truly inspiring and heartbreaking story. Thanks to the Gays for sharing it and to Bella English for writing it beautifully. I hope and pray that their faith will help them endure and that the foundation they have founded in little Joey's memory will aid other families and offer them some solace.